How to Plan your Solo Trip

Going for a Solo Trip is not easy business. It requires a lot of beforehand planning on how to reach and where to stay. There are solo travelers who take a one way ticket with no prior planning and nosedive into trouble, not my style. They say roadblocks make you a seasoned traveler, which even I have said here. But it doesn’t mean we have to create roadblocks on our own and invite trouble. Why not keep the trip smooth and enjoyable.

Travel Smart, Travel Far.

Watch Your Budget:

Being a budget traveler, I would say spend wise. Plan where you want to go. Check the transportation fare. If it is an overnight trip, ditch flights, go for a train or a bus. Watch the hotel rates. They will go sky high during the season time. Try travelling Off-Season. You can still enjoy the place with no annoying commercial crowd bumping into you.

Research on the Place:

Do an extensive research on the place, before you land there. At least learn to greet people in their local language. You will be able to connect with natives more freely and they will be more than a welcoming host. Google it up. Find the dos and don’ts of a particular place. You don’t want to do anything stupid which may be offensive to their culture and project yourself as a total asshole. Every country has its own culture and way of life. Respect and Live like a local, wherever you are.

Book your Flights and Accommodation:

Once you have done the research you will get an idea on how you would like to spend time in that place and what are the major attractions. So book your rooms in such a way that you can easily access the places you wanna go. If you are booking flights, it is recommended to book 4-5 months in advance to get the best deals. There are sites like SkyScanner where you can compare the flight rates but I dint find it to be very useful for Indians. The prices seem to be quite high when you convert the dollars to INR. If you keep your dates flexible, then you can book from the official sites of the airlines where I found them to cheaper. When you are booking or researching, do it from the Incognito Window of your browser. The booking sites usually track your browsing pattern using cookies and then can hike their prices when you visit the site again.

Pack Less:

Do not pack your rucksack with all your clothes. You are not running away. Take only what is necessary as per the duration of your stay. Maybe you will buy some stuff over there and you will run out of space to bring them back. Keep it light.

Keep Necessary Documents:

Always keep copies of necessary documents in person. If you get into trouble they will ask you for your identity. These docs can come in handy. Also buy a spare phone and feed all your close contacts in that. You can use it if your primary phone gets lost or gets stolen. If you are traveling abroad, keep the address and contact of your nation’s embassy at that particular place you are going. They can get you back home in case anything goes wrong.

Get a Travel Insurance:

Travel insurance is a must if you are flying overseas. If you do a research on travel insurances you will come across ‘World Nomads’. But let me tell you one thing. Their insurance are tailor made for each country. And the bad news….Indians cant get the same benefits as the western countries get. World nomads covers only claims regarding medical insurance and that too for more than 2K INR. So it is better for Indians to opt for insurances provided by ICICI or TATA Allianz which covers other claims like air ticket cancellation and baggage theft that too under 1K INR.

That’s all I have for now. Will update this post if I come across any more Planning Tips in the future.

Some really great tips! Research is the biggest thing I need to practice more. I don’t do nearly enough and tend to “fly by the seat of my pants.” It drives my husband crazy and has often put me into precarious situations! Oops!

I don’t always pre book everything when travelling solo but definitely think as a female it pays to be sensible. This obviously depends on where you are travelling so I agree entirely that prior research is essential. I would also urge you to check money options, my husband and I have had a close shave on this trip to the Philippines as the ATMs simply will not work with our UK cards,.